Ok, Fine, You're Right!

[TattooedMommie]

(bg- cashier at a small grocery store)

About 4 years ago, our store did away with the special "sales-club" card. Our advertised sale prices now ring up for everyone. However, about 6 months later, we instituted an OPTIONAL Rewards card...think, frequent shopper points, entries in to raffles, special deals emailed to cardholder....The old cards do nothing, they will not even scan. We issued (and continue to issue) the new cards at the register to anyone who is interested, and we point out the web address and phone number on the back of the card, explaining that they need to use one of them to register the card/account to begin earning the rewards.
Trying to explain the difference between the two types of cards led to many dead horses being beaten. No, you don't NEED your card, only if you CHOOSE to participate. No, it will NOT affect your sales prices. No, it has NOTHING to do with your check-writing, et al...For over 3 years now. Multiple times a day. I have a robot-voice spiel I run through at the first sign of confusion and try to clear it up quickly. As you can imagine, explaining these damn cards is one of my #1 pet peeves at work.

So, yesterday, a woman hands me her card and when I scan it, it pops up as "unregistered card"...

me: "Oh, it looks like you haven't registered the card yet."
CardLady: "You're wrong. I've had this card for 15 years."
me: "Um, well, we just started issuing these cards 3 years ago..."
CL: "No, sorry, you're just wrong."
me: "We did away with the old cards about 4 years ago. When you were given the new card, they should've pointed out that you have to register it..."
CL:" I applied for this card 15 years ago. They have my information already.."
me: "well, it says 'unregistered card' so you might wanna check on the website..."
CL: " No! your machine is WRONG! I use this card everytime I come in here and it always works, I dont CARE what you say, you ARE wrong!"

My brain just went "Fuck it" and I shrugged, trying not to laugh as I completed the transaction.
my CW was listening and later said "Well, what would WE know, we only work here and deal with these stupid cards everyday..."

[Catwoman2965]

Ugh. My store has both a reward card and store charge. My favorite is when I ask (as I am supposed to) if they have our store CHARGE. "i don't know" um, ok. I don't know about you, but I know every credit card I have, that's an open account. In fact, I can name all the others I've had going back 25+ years.

I can see if they say "I don't know" and follow up with "I did but I haven't used in a very long time, so I'm not sure if its still open" That I have no problem with. But those who simply say they don't know? I have to wonder how they make it through the day!

[MoonCat]

Catwoman, they probably aren't listening and think you mean the rewards card. If so I can understand why they wouldn't know - sometimes I'm not sure how many of those things I have. I've got 3 drug store cards, 3 supermarket cards, one for Panera, one for a local coffee/tea store, one for the salon where I get my hair cut, and I think a couple of other random things I rarely use.

If they honestly don't know if they have your store's CHARGE card, then, wow, yeah....that's dumb.

[Food Lady]

I get that more often than you'd think. We have some helpless people shopping in my store....

[Catwoman2965]

Catwoman, they probably aren't listening and think you mean the rewards card. If so I can understand why they wouldn't know - sometimes I'm not sure how many of those things I have. I've got 3 drug store cards, 3 supermarket cards, one for Panera, one for a local coffee/tea store, one for the salon where I get my hair cut, and I think a couple of other random things I rarely use.

If they honestly don't know if they have your store's CHARGE card, then, wow, yeah....that's dumb.

Nope. we are very specific (at least I am) asking if they have "x store CREDIT CARD" as we are supposed to say. I guess there are some who can't differentiate between a credit card, and reward card. Which actually I know to be true. Because we pull up the customer at the beginning of every transaction, and "assign" them. if they want. if they don't, no issue. We can also look up the customer's charge, for them to pay, and I can't tell you how many times I've done that, only to find out they don't actually even HAVE a store credit card, only the rewards.

And I too have an entire key ring devoted to my various store cards.

[carryonnow]

Willing to bet that CL takes the same tone when she deals with the happy people at the RMV. I gave you my information 63 1/2 years ago when I started driving.